Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32 (day four)
“Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.”
One of the principal values of the Kingdom of God is reconciliation. Jesus came so that we would be reconciled to the Father, and in Kingdom life, through the power of the Spirit, we can also be reconciled to one another. But we often don’t take the work of reconciliation as seriously as we should.
Jesus tells us that before we present our offering at the altar – before we present ourselves as holy and living sacrifices to God in worship – if there is enmity between us and someone else, it needs to be handled immediately. We cannot hang on to old grudges or simply wait for time to help us forget them. The enemy would love nothing more than for us to take unforgiveness casually. We have to fight through our pride and even the awkwardness that we feel in order to get to peace – ASAP, Jesus says.
That being said, we know that Jesus lived the human life. He understands the complexity of human relationships. He knows that there are some wounds which will not fully heal until we’re in heaven, and that’s exactly his point here. We can’t fulfill the law perfectly. We can’t forgive perfectly. We can’t reconcile perfectly. Jesus can. What step of faith do you need to take today in order to live a life of peace?